


Foolproof Glance

by RedCoral



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, Implied Sexual Content, Intervention, M/M, Misunderstandings, Oblivious Liam, Oblivious Theo Raeken, Theo uses Liam's Instagram, a couple f-bombs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-21
Updated: 2018-05-21
Packaged: 2019-05-09 20:57:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,664
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14723471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedCoral/pseuds/RedCoral
Summary: Where Theo hijacks Liam's Instagram telling the world about his feelings for the werewolf, everyone thinks they're dating and Liam has no idea.--“Mason! Stop, okay? I told you, Theo doesn’t like me like that.”“Dude! How dense can you be?! The guy posted an Instagram story telling the world he likes you.”“What? When?!”“Like, two days ago?”“Theo hasn’t posted any stories in a while.”“Yeah, that’s because he posted it on your account. It’s in your highlights. Are you seriously telling me you haven’t seen this?”“Why would I see my own stories?!”Yes, that was the excuse he was going with.





	Foolproof Glance

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone!  
> So this was supposed to be a really small, fluffy, funny fic, but the plot sneaked in and I thought I'd see where it leads. This is the result. I hope you like it!
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own the show or the characters. 
> 
> Enjoy!!!

Liam was a popular guy. Theo knew that. He also knew the guy was freaking oblivious too. There was no other way to explain it. He had witnessed people hitting on him and Liam having no clue in the world what was happening, just scrunching his nose in that adorable way of his when he was confused at people’s seemingly random behaviour. He had watched Liam shoot people down with a small apologetic smile on his face. Somehow his awkwardness always made people smile. If Theo belonged in that group of people… well, there was no one who could corroborate that fact.

They were hanging out today in the garden. Corey had been on a family summer vacation for the past three days and Mason needed a pick-me-up pronto. So, they lit up the grill and got the meat out of the fridge to have an impromptu barbecue. Theo had just gotten the sodas out of the fridge when he happened to overhear a conversation that made him freeze in his steps.

 _“So, what’s going on with you?”_ Theo heard Mason ask. That was weird. He hadn’t noticed anything wrong with Liam that day.

 _“What do you mean?”_ Obviously, neither had Liam.

 _“I mean, why aren’t you out on a date already? I know Brett asked you out.”_ Theo hadn’t. He tried to hold in a growl at that, a possessive feeling overwhelming his senses so suddenly, he almost missed Liam’s answer.

 _“You know I don’t like him like that.”_ Theo smiled, he couldn’t help it. Maybe he didn’t deserve Liam himself, maybe it was another thing to feel guilty over, but Theo wished Liam didn’t like anybody else like that. He didn’t know if he would be able to handle that.

 _“I don’t see you making a move on the guy you actually like like that.”_ It was like Theo could see Mason raise an eyebrow at Liam even though he had no visual of the best friends from where he was hiding. Wait. Liam liked a guy. Theo’s heart almost stopped working for a minute there. It couldn’t be… No. There was no way. It was someone else, someone Theo didn’t know. He tried to quash the hope rising in his chest with that thought, even though his treacherous mind kept reminding him that he knew all of Liam’s friends.

 _“I don’t – He doesn’t – Shut up.”_ Liam sputtered and Theo bet a hundred bucks he was blushing right now. He almost chuckled at the image his mind conjured up for him, but he knew the other werewolf would hear it if he did. He wasn’t ready to show himself yet for some reason.

 _“Why aren’t you going out with_ him _again?”_ Mason… Mason knew things and Theo couldn’t shake the feeling that he didn’t just stress the pronoun for Liam’s shake. He thought the only person in the world who knew him was Liam, but maybe he wasn’t the only clairvoyant one when it came to Theo’s habits. 

The hope in his chest was roaring now, making his wolf restless and his coyote’s cunning streak to show itself as he let a grin take over his face, a plan forming in his head already. He knew exactly how he was going to ask Liam out. Yes, he was making his move. One of them had to or they’d never get out of this loop of frustration, lust and longing. Theo moved then, three sodas in hand and walked back out to the barbeque just in time to hear Liam hiss at his best friend, _“He’s coming, shut up.”_ As he saw Liam blush, looking anywhere but at him and Mason with a smirk on his face, throwing a wink Theo’s way as if he knew the chimera had heard it all, Theo’s grin widened. Oh, yes. He was going to enjoy this.

 

* * *

 

Okay, his plan may have backfired a bit.

Wait. There was a perfectly good explanation for it.

The thing was, it took Theo a bit of time to execute his plan. He needed Liam’s phone for it to work and the man refused to leave it behind even for a second.  It wasn’t until after Corey came back that he was able to get his hands on it. Mason was with Corey and Liam had gone to the hospital to bring dinner to his dad. Since he had had no plans for the night and he knew the other two pack members were safe and sound, he left his phone behind and Theo smirked to himself when he saw it there on the nightstand when he got out of the shower.

He dressed quickly in some sweats and his pink hoodie, which he knew made his eyes look even greener. He had caught Liam staring at him many times when he was wearing it and now he was insanely hoping that was the reason. The good thing about Liam – or bad, depending on how you looked at it – was that he refused to lock his phone with a password. They had fought over it extensively once. Theo had asked him what if someone stole it and got the pack’s information to which Liam’s rebuttal was, “What if I’m dying and I need to call you? Because I’m telling you, trying to remember the damn password will not be my last thought.”

Theo wanted to ask if it was going to be him, if he meant call him specifically or just any pack member, but he was scared of the answer. He didn’t want to dwell on it, didn’t even want to think how realistic that possibility seemed given their way of life. Not Theo being Liam’s last thought, but Liam having a last thought at some time in the future that Theo hoped wasn’t anywhere near.

He had ceded that fight. He had only glared at the werewolf , hating that as selfish as it sounded he  wanted Liam to call _him_ if he ever was in danger, resigned to the fact that he would do _anything_ to save Liam’s life, even giving up on his own, a choice Theo could picture in his head Liam growling at and flashing his eyes.

Theo shook his head to rid himself of such thoughts. This plan was not going to be dampened or endangered by anyone, not even his own brain. So he unlocked Liam’s phone and brought up the Instagram app. Liam had hundreds of followers without even trying. The pictures he posted were innocent enough, at least to Liam’s eyes, mostly from lacrosse or hanging out with the pack, smiling with his eyes closed to avoid the flare of the lens. He obviously had no idea what a sweaty man with bright blue eyes and a perfect smile could do to a person.

Theo pressed the button to bring up the screen that would let him post a new story to Liam’s Instagram account. When he changed it to the front camera and saw his own self staring back at him, he paused for a moment, going over in his mind all that he wanted to say, knowing he had limited time. All he had to do was think of Liam, his smile, his anger protectiveness, his selfless nature. He knew if he went down that path, he might take too long to get out. Yes, it’s happened before.

Theo knew what he was going to say. As he lifted the phone to an angle that made him look brighter and happier somehow – or maybe he was just excited for what was about to happen – he hit the record button and smiled at the camera, all the while imagining Liam looking at this video fondly, shocked and blushing; one of the million expressions of Liam he loved.

“For those of you who know him, Liam can be pretty oblivious sometimes, so I thought I’d give him a hint,” he said, smirking at the camera. “So, hello, I’m Theo Raeken, Liam’s boyfriend. Hopefully.” He smiled shyly this time, his voice had that gruff to it from when he was tired which always made Liam unable to look anywhere but at Theo. He rolled his eyes as he imagined Liam’s confused face at what he had just said and continued, “Yes, Liam. _I like you._ ” He stressed the sentence as if he was filled with exasperation. Not that he wasn’t. Put people didn’t need to know that. So he accompanied it with a smirk to cover up the range of emotions behind those three words. “Will you go out with me?” He asked the million dollar question, trying to cover up his breathlessness as it hit him how important the answer was.  He didn’t have much time left, few seconds, so he brought the screen closer to his face then, as if to share a secret with the world, and whispered loud enough for the camera to pick it up, “Let’s hope he says yes,” he threw a wink in the mix that seemed completely effortless in a way Mason had admitted bitterly it was Theo’s specialty.

The video was done and Theo fumbled for a couple of minutes with the filters, but decided to keep the original. He checked the time; Liam would be home soon; he needed to finish this up. So, without hesitation he uploaded it, and put it in Liam’s account’s highlights to make sure it wouldn’t be gone tomorrow just in case. He closed the app and locked Liam’s phone, leaving it back where it was on the nightstand. He heard his truck turning on the road of Liam’s house and grinned, excited for Liam’s reaction while dreading it at the same time. He hoped Liam was okay with this. He hadn’t thought to ask for permission covered up with a lie of course, but it didn’t matter now. He hoped Liam wouldn’t get angry. Theo wasn’t going to delete the story anyway.

He sat on the rolling chair with his feet up on the bed and a book on his lap, trying to steady his heartbeat as he heard the werewolf’s steps come closer. The door opened and said werewolf flopped on the bed. Theo heard him groan and shift on the bed but he didn’t turn to look. He knew his heart would betray him in a bit.

“Hey, Theo? Did I ever apologize for breaking your nose three times?” Liam asked, his voice muffled by the pillow.

Theo snorted. No, he never had and Theo didn’t ever expect him to. He turned to Liam with a smirk on his face, “What do you want?”

Liam actually sat up at that, looking at him with an innocent expression on his face the puppy eyes on full force, and asked hopefully, “Do my biology project for me? Pretty please?”

Theo rolled his eyes, to cover up the fact that he would do anything Liam asked as long as he kept on looking at him like that. Yeah, it was a revelation he had recently worked out that he couldn’t say no to Liam with puppy eyes. It was a problem. Theo huffed in fake annoyance, “Only because you think I’m pretty,” he smirked.

Liam blinked at him, blushing, and “I don’t-”

But Theo interrupted him before he could finish that sentence. “You want me to do your biology project?” he challenged him, staring him down with a raised eyebrow.

Liam shut his mouth then, and looked at the floor and he grumbled, “Fine, you’re pretty.”

If Theo smiled at how steady the werewolf’s pulse was, well, Liam didn’t see it.

 

* * *

 

Theo was starting to get grumpy. It’s been more than twenty four hours and Liam still hadn’t seen the Instagram story. Or he had and didn’t say anything. Maybe he was never going to.

No. Liam isn’t like that. When he’d see it, Theo knew he would demand an explanation or would just punch him for hijacking his Instagram. But nothing happened. Theo got even more snappy as time passed and left the room every time Liam came searching for him. Maybe he didn’t feel the same way. Maybe he had read it all wrong. Theo rarely experienced anxiety, but this was one of those times and he didn’t like the feeling. He spent time alone rather than hanging around the others. He started thinking about stealing Liam’s phone, deleting the damn story for good. He didn’t want to. But maybe he would have to.

 

* * *

 

Liam was confused. Theo was avoiding him and he didn’t know why. Every time he walked into the room to hang out with the chimera, Theo would come up with a shitty excuse and leave, not even trying to control his heartbeat as he lied. Liam didn’t know what he had done to the other man to be treated like this. As if that wasn’t enough, today he had had practice in the morning, school afterwards and practice again after the last period and people just kept smiling at him and congratulating him on a boyfriend Liam didn’t even know he had. At least it was over now. He had just showered and dressed when his phone vibrated in his hands. He opened the message hope blooming in his chest that maybe Theo was texting him again just as he used to do, like, every other minute. No such luck, though. Liam sighed as he read the message from Scott.

_Can you come over?_

_Be there in ten,_ Liam replied.

Liam felt a pat on his back and he turned to see Corey all dressed, his hair dripping from the shower he had a few minutes ago and his gym bag strung over his shoulder. “Hey, Corey. Going to Mason’s?” He asked as he packed his lacrosse gear in his own bag.

Corey smiled at the mention of Mason’s name. God, these two were so in love it was almost disgusting. Liam was happy for them, don’t get him wrong, he just wanted to feel the way they did for someone else, or more accurately have it reciprocated by a specific person. “Yeah,” Corey said and added with a smirk, “where’s your boyfriend?”

Liam glared at the chimera as he zipped up his bag and put it over his shoulder. “Haha. Very funny,” Liam deadpanned. His friends knew he didn’t have a boyfriend. Did they really need to rub it in his face? He was annoyed by other people, he didn’t want to get annoyed by his friends, but it was hard to keep the scowl away from his face.

Corey frowned, confused. “I wasn’t trying to be?” he said unsure as to the reason behind Liam’s reaction.

“Whatever,” Liam said, “I gotta run. Scott wants to meet for something. See you later,” he ran away before his mood got even worse. He still heard Corey mumble, “yeah, see you,” behind him. He didn’t give any thought to his bemused tone. He just wanted this day to be over. He just wanted for Theo to pull him down on the bed next to him as he did every time Liam was too hesitant to intrude on the chimera’s space like that. He needed his anchor back. Was that too much to ask for?

 

* * *

 

Liam walked into the McCall household fifteen minutes later through the back door, where he found Scott and Stiles sitting on the counter speaking in hissed whispers. They stopped when Liam walked in and Liam took in the heavy and uncomfortable atmosphere surrounding him. He tried not to let it affect him. “What’s up?” he asked puzzled.

Scott and Stiles looked at each other, and Stiles nodded with a motion towards Liam for Scott to begin and when he hesitated, he did it again. Scott looked at him with a sheepish expression on his face, almost embarrassed which did nothing but amplify the awkwardness in the room. “Liam,” he started carefully, “is there something you want to tell me? Anything at all?”

Before Liam got a chance to speak, Stiles jumped in, his body trying to relax to appear as least threatening as possible. “Now, before you say anything, we’d like to tell you we love you no matter what, okay?” Stiles looked at him, his heartbeat steady and his tone honest and dread was creeping up on Liam as he went on. “And we’ll support you no matter what, unless it’s stupid. Like this probably is,” he shrugged and nodded to himself, trying to convince his racing mind this was the case. Just a simple misunderstanding. But Liam was getting closer and closer to panic territory and if this wasn’t the black icing on the cake of his day, he didn’t know what was. Stiles almost whined as he went on to ask, “Did you really have to go for a psychopathic manipulative bastard?! There are so many great guys around!” Stiles said, his hands flailing as his mannerisms got wilder with each passing second. “Like Nolan! Nolan is a good choice!” He said hitting Scott on the chest with the back of his hand as if he was asking him to congratulate him or something.

Liam just glared at him. “Nolan tried to kill us. Several times.”

Scott rubbed the back of his neck nervously, hating not taking his best friend’s side, but “He’s got a point there.”

“Then Brett!” Stiles replied excitedly. “How about Brett?! He’s got like an eight-pack, doesn’t he?” He looked at both werewolves as if waiting for confirmation.

Liam was officially stumped. What the heck was going on today?! “Bre- What are you talking about?” he asked, frowning at them.

Stiles looked at him as if he was stupid and dealing with a brainless idiot. “We’re talking about you dating Theo? Keep up with us here, Liam,” he said irritated.

Liam’s frown didn’t let up as he told them, “I’m not dating Theo.” He watched as Scott and Stiles looked at each other in confusion sparing a moment every now and again to look at Lima as if they were trying to see whether that was true or not, when it suddenly clicked in his mind and felt his anger take over. “Wait. Is that why you called me here?”

Stiles gaped like a fish for a moment until he said, “No,” while Scott said “Yes,” at the same time. Which only made Stiles sigh and correct his previous answer to a grunting “Yes”.

Liam was really angry now. Initially he thought the two of them had figured out his feelings for the older chimera and were trying to talk him out of it. But this… this was even worse. They staged a freaking intervention! And they thought what? Trashing his supposed boyfriend was a great idea?! In what world would Liam ever comply with that? How dare they insult Theo like this? Insult Liam’s feelings? Dismissing them as if they were a stupid infatuation.  Liam couldn’t believe this. Theo had changed. No, Theo had evolved. He had let his heart feel after a long time of not being allowed to in order to survive. Theo wasn’t a psychopath. He was complicated. Theo had been kidnapped and abused until he became what was deemed necessary to the actual psychopaths controlling him.

But they didn’t know that, did they? They hadn’t even spared the time to get to know the other man. Their own traumatic experiences stopped them from seeing beyond the blinkers on their heads. Theo didn’t deserve this and neither did Liam.  He clenched his fists to hold the shift back and glared at them, Scott getting up from his seat to step closer as he smelled the anger emanating from Liam. Liam took a step back which made Liam stop. He didn’t want to be close to him right now. He was too angry for anything good to come out of their proximity. “You know what,” he started, staring them both down even though he was shorter than the two. “It’s none of your business who I date or not.” Liam turned away to leave then, but as he reached the backdoor, he realized he had one more thing to say. He looked at them one last time before he walked out, “And for your information, Theo has saved me more times than I can count and he’s still here even though he doesn’t have to be.”

Scott and Stiles watched the angry beta leave, gaping after him and realizing something important from his reaction. Stiles was the first to voice it. “Liam likes Theo, doesn’t he?”

“Yeap,” Scott said.

“And Theo likes Liam?”

“Yeap.”

“Damn it.”

 

* * *

 

Liam took his time walking home. He wanted to shake off his anger before he had to face the older chimera because then he’d know something was wrong. Not that he wouldn’t know either way; lately Theo had gotten incredibly good at reading Liam’s moods and expressions. But right now Theo was avoiding him. And as much as he wanted Theo’s comfort, he was scared the other man wouldn’t want to give it to him. There was only one other person that had managed to calm him down when he stood over a cliff, and he pulled his phone out to call him.

When Mason picked it up, the first thing he said was, _“What’s wrong?”_

Liam didn’t know if he had intuitive powers or if Corey had told him about their encounter in the locker room, but it didn’t really matter right now. “Scott and Stiles,” Liam scowled even though Mason couldn’t see him through the phone. “They staged an intervention. A freaking intervention! Can you believe that? They tried to tell me not to date Theo! They told me to date Nolan or Brett! Fucking Brett,” Liam ranted to his best friend.

Mason stayed silent for a minute and Liam kept on scuffing his shoes against the sidewalk, kicking away invisible rocks. Finally, Mason asked, _“So what happened? Are you guys together now or what?”_

“What are you talking about? With who?”

 _“Theo!”_ Mason exclaimed loudly as if Liam should have known that already.

Liam sighed. Mason had been trying to get him to talk to Theo for a while now. He loved his friend dearly, but his relentlessness was getting too much. “Mason! Stop, okay? I told you, Theo doesn’t like me like that.”

Mason snorted like it was joke, but when Liam didn’t laugh with him, he asked, _“You’re kidding right?”_

“Mason,” Liam growled in warning.

But Mason apparently didn’t care because he went on, an incredulous tone in his voice, _“Dude! How dense can you be?! The guy posted an Instagram story telling the world he likes you.”_

Liam froze. That wasn’t possible. But Mason would never lie about something like this. “What? When?!”

_“Like, two days ago?”_

Liam frowned. He checked his Instagram daily. “Theo hasn’t posted any stories in a while.”

_“Yeah, that’s because he posted it on your account. It’s in your highlights. Are you seriously telling me you haven’t seen this?”_

Liam wished he could see the story right now but he couldn’t as long as he was on the phone. He got nervous for some reason. When did Theo do this? How? Why? So many questions only something as silly as an Instagram story could answer. “Why would I see my own stories?!” Liam asked his friend in frustration. “Fuck,” he said, pushing his hand through his hair as he paced back and forth on the sidewalk frustrated. “I’ve got to go. Bye!” Liam said and hung up the phone, not before he heard Mason yell at him a _“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!”_ which left him an ocean of choices to be honest. He had to watch it! Was this why Theo had been avoiding him?! Fuck, he really screwed up, didn’t he?

It took a bit of fumbling till he went to the highlights on his Instagram account. He tapped on the most recent one and found Theo staring at him in his hot pink hoodie, the one that made his eyes brighter, softer, happier. By the time the short video was over, Liam could barely stand. He felt as if something had knocked him to his knees even though they were nowhere near the ground. Everything made sense somehow. Theo being antsy, irritated, snappy. Liam knew he’d have been worse in his place. But he was angry; angry at the stupid chimera for not teasing him or daring him to check his stories or anything else that he was so used to doing. Instead the idiot had waited silently for Liam to speak first and now Liam could miss his chance because of that. If he did, he’d kill him.

It’s safe to say, Liam had never gotten home faster.

 

* * *

 

When Liam got home, he raced up the stairs to Theo’s room only to find the chimera sitting on his bed, the wardrobe opposite wide open and a gym bag at his feet. Theo looked resigned and Liam panicked. He felt a stab in his chest at the thought of Theo leaving and he couldn’t help the growl that escaped his throat. His eyes flashed as Theo looked up at him like a deer caught in the headlights. Liam moved fast and used his supernatural strength to bring the other man to his feet. Theo looked shocked, for the first time in his life fumbling as he didn’t know where to put his hands. His body felt surrounded by Liam; one of his hands was holding onto the front of his shirt and the other was holding onto the chimera’s neck, almost as if he was holding him in place, like he was afraid he’d disappear any moment now just like he had every other time Liam had stepped into the room these past couple of days.

“You’re an idiot,” Liam said and kissed him. He leaned in with a force he didn’t know he could muster while the fear was gripping his insides, but when their lips touched there was nothing Liam could compare it to. Theo didn’t hold back, he didn’t freeze, he didn’t hesitate. And Liam tried to ground him, to keep him right where he was, to will him to stay. He tried to say all the things he wasn’t ready to voice. He tried to apologize for not doing this sooner, but this brought an echo of his fear right back into his mind, reminding him how it felt when he was scared for him, for Theo leaving him, for Liam having no time to stop him. “You’re not going anywhere,” he growled against Theo’s lips and held him as close as he could. He didn’t wait for Theo to respond. He leaned back in, missing Theo’s lips like they were the oxygen he needed to breathe.

Liam was getting desperate; his hold on reality barely there and Theo was the only hook he had on the ground. Liam wanted to feel him. He wanted to feel his presence, surround himself with his scent, feel his heart beat against his chest. He wanted to feel how real this was. He wanted something tangible, something more. He wanted to give himself to the man in front of him and he wished Theo felt the same way. He needed his touch to ground him, his arms to hold him close, his warmth to keep him home. He always felt like he needed Theo, but never like this. This was an all-consuming, fire-breathing feeling that was taking residence inside his chest that made him push Theo back on the bed and climb over him. He made his intentions known as he straddled the other man and touched him wherever he could reach. He hesitated only a moment to ask, “Is this okay?”

And Theo to his own surprise spoke the words that had changed him when he had first uttered them under completely different circumstances which Liam was the only one who knew about. “You don’t have to stop.”

Liam stilled at the words. He knew what they meant, but he didn’t know if they were good or bad in this case. He didn’t want Theo to just go along with what Liam wanted to keep him happy. He wanted Theo to want this, to want Liam like this. He cupped Theo’s cheek in his hands and looked into Theo’s eyes, searching for a sign, anything to tell him what was going on in the chimera’s mind. “I won’t unless you want me to.”

Theo shook his head at that, “Don’t stop. Please,” he added breathless, almost begged. This is what Liam did to him. He took his breath away and gave it back to his lungs with every touch of their lips, with every caress on his body. He had let Liam in back before he knew there was anything to let him into, until Liam had grown roots under his skin and it was too late for Theo to escape. But he didn’t want to escape anymore. He wanted to stay right where he was until Liam understood he deserved better than this or until Theo was good enough for Liam.

“Don’t,” Liam told him, a thumb brushing against his bottom lip as if he was trying to silence them even though they weren’t moving. At times Theo forgot what letting Liam in meant. But Liam never stopped reminding him. “What I feel for you, it’s consuming me, okay? It feels like fire spreading through me and I don’t think it’s going down anytime soon.”

Theo didn’t know how to respond to that. Or maybe he did. He leaned up to kiss him again. He wanted to tell Liam things he had barely admitted to his own self. He wanted to thank him for being here, for wanting him here even when Theo thought he was beyond saving, even during the time when Liam had believed the same thing. He wanted to thank him for saving him in ways he didn’t know he needed saving. He wanted to hold him, keep him close to his chest as Liam had wrapped himself around a heart that wasn’t his but was still beating in his chest. He wanted Liam to understand that this, whatever it was between them, made his head spin and his heart ache when Liam wasn’t close enough. It made his body crave something only Liam could give him and it was terrifying. It was a heaven and hell of its own making, a place Theo would gladly step into every minute of every day for Liam.

That night he didn’t just tip his toe into that place. He walked in confidently with his head held high and his feet barely touching the ground. And Liam met him halfway. He found him in the fog and took his hand. He held him close and made him feel safer than he had ever been. And Theo helped Liam get out of his own head, escape his anger for once and his trepidation for all the things that go bump in the night and threaten his friends, the people he loves, the man in his arms. And when they were laying then later on, both lost inside their own minds, Liam whispered something as he lied on Theo’s chest.

“Were you really going to leave?”

 _Leave me?_ Theo heard. “I was scared,” Theo said, no other words coming to him at that moment.

“Would you have left?” _If I didn’t get there in time, would you be gone by the time I’d have opened that door?_

Theo gulped then, as the thoughts that had been swirling into his mind these past few days made it hard for him to speak. “I couldn’t – I want you to be happy, I’ll always want that. But if your happiness had nothing to do with me, I don’t know if I could…” Theo choked back the emotion that tried to spill, but he wasn’t successful this time; he still felt Liam’s hand rubbing his chest right where his heart was, telling him with only a touch his heart was beating faster.

“You are my happiness, Theo,” Liam admitted for the first time.

“I don’t-” _deserve this._ Liam shushed him before he went any further.

“Don’t go,” Liam whispered, almost afraid that Theo would.

Theo hugged him closer to his chest, burying his face in the other man’s hair, taking in his scent that would follow him for the rest of time. Even if Liam left him at any point in the future, Theo knew he’d follow him, stay close to him even if it tore him apart. He would still protect him, he’d still give his heart back a thousand times if it meant Liam was safe. He tightened his hold and kissed him on the forehead. He stayed there for a minute, and said softly, “How can I?”

The only response he got was a touch of lips right above his heart. Liam knew it wasn’t his own, but he still held him close, he accepted him even though he couldn’t understand all of the choices he had ever made. But he knew about them and he kept getting closer. Sometimes Theo used to wonder if it would have been any different if he had his own heart beating inside his chest. What ifs didn’t matter anymore. This between them, what they had, what they were feeling, had only just begun. It was a train Theo had no idea where it was going. It could be leading him right back to his sister for all he knew. But if Liam was there, Theo could do it. Liam would try to protect him and Theo would yell at him for risking his life only for the scene to be repeated in reverse sometime later. It was what they did. They saved each other. And they were never going to stop.

**Author's Note:**

> So, what do you think? Was it worth it? Just so you know, I wrote this whole thing in a day. I just wanted to get the idea out of my head. Constractive criticism is always appreciated!!
> 
> Btw, I don't know if this is the right place to ask, but I'm looking for a beta-reader? English in not my mother tongue, but I am an English Lit major and I have been checking out my own work all this time and I think I keep missing things. I want to improve myself and learn from people than know more than I do. If you or someone you know is interested, you can contact me here or on [my tumblr](http://puddingwillbeouralways.tumblr.com/) .
> 
> Thank you for reading!   
> -RC


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